Long Time No See!! Time to start cutting!

I know it has been a while since I have posted but I just got the supplies and as of yesterday started to build. I currently am missing a few pieces but thats ok I will get them soon. I got off work yesterday and was being lazy sitting on the couch. I was about to fall asleep when I just decided I wanted to at least cut something up. I grabbed my first barrel out of the garage and started. Here is what I used:

1- Ryobi Jigsaw with a new blade
1 - 1" Spade Drill bit
1 - 1/2" drill Dewalt Drill
1 - 1/4" Cordless Ryobi Drill (i'll explain later why I have 2 listed)

1-  Plastic Barrel
1 - 3/4" PVC male adapter
1 - 3" long piece of 3/4" PVC pipe
1 - 3/4" PVC threaded ball valve
1 - 3/4" PVCstreet ell
1 - 3/4" conduit locknut
1 - Framing Square
1 - SAFETY GLASSES - Very Important
Plans - http://www.fastonline.org/images/manuals/Aquaculture/Aquaponic_Information/barrelponics_manual_email.pdf

The first thing I did was take my framing sqaure and measure and draw lines of where I was going to cut.
The plans have all the specifics I am not one to reinvent the wheel so I will just explain the basic of what I did and tell you the things that I either made a mistake on or if the plans were lacking on something. Because this was my first step of actually building my dream.. It was huge just to see the lines drawn. I used a dry erase marker.

I have never used a jigsaw before so I took it out of the box and immediately went for the manual. I wanted to make sure I used it the right way. It was very easy to put the blade in. All I had to do is push a yellow lever down all the way, slip the blade in and make sure it was in the guide properly. The first thing I did next is drill a hole big enough for the jigsaw blade to fit into as a starting hole. I then took my first leap into jigsawing and cut around the square. In the picture above it doesn't show the rounded corners I put on it. I thought it would be easier for me to do with the jigsaw. I started up and moved around my lines. I tried very hard to keep it going in the lines but I am not yet very good at controlling it.

You can see from the picture I did a pretty good job but not perfect. I also didn't clean out the barrel first because I figured it would be easier to clean with a big hole and a drain in it. This barrel had apple cider vinegar and surprisingly enough didn't smell bad as a I expected it to. Here is the jigsaw I used and it worked like a charm...

Now its time to take the barrel outside. I wasn't sure how messy the drill would be so i figured that outside would be the best place to take this. I got my cordless drill out and put in the 1" spade bit in it. I measured 1.5" from the bottom and drilled attempted to drill a 1" hole. Apparently my cordless drill can only drill air because as soon as I started to drill there just wasn't enough torque to finish the job. I pulled out my DEWALT DWD210G 10-Amp 1/2-Inch Pistol-Grip Drill and put the bit in it. I didn't realize how much torque this drill had until I started to drill. I ended up dropping it the first time :( but I knew I shouldn't do that again. I have never spent so much on a tool so i wanted to keep it in good condition. Luckily the hole didn't get messed up. To make my drain spout complete I took a 3/4" male adapter which is basicly is a tiny pvc adapter that has a threaded side and on the other is just an opening for a 3/4 pvc. The instructions say to use aquarium silicon but for now I am just putting the pieces together to use for a drain to clean it out. I am not going to seal anything till I am ready for final assembly. here is the step by step pictures of the drain assembly. This is also the part that the pump gets attached to.

This is the male adapter screwed into the hole I drilled.

I used my  PVC Cutter to cut 3" off so I could use it in my drain.

I installed a 3/4" street elbow which is an adapter that allows me to put another fitting on the end. The skinnier part makes it a street el. 

This is my completed drain with a ball valve. Keep in mind this is just to clean it. The final assembly will be done with the rest of the project. As you can see it is dark outside. I will be going back inside to clean the barrel now.

I put the barrel in my bathtub because it was soo late and I wanted to use hot water. I spent the next 30 minutes cleaning out the barrel.

Well I will see you next time!